Chapter 2: Watching Like a Hawk
The person didn’t stay long in the ward, their movements cautious, hardly making a sound. Even so, in the quiet single room, Shen Yiqiu didn’t dare to breathe too loudly, fearing that the person would discover she was feigning sleep.
After taking her pictures, the person left without a trace, as if the past five minutes had been Shen Yiqiu’s imagination. But she knew clearly that it wasn’t fake; the residual heat from the person’s presence lingered, and a dry, warm scent still hung in the air.
What puzzled her was, who had sent this person to check on her condition? The creditors had been waiting outside for days and had already learned a lot about her situation from the doctors. There was no need to sneak in late at night.
What surprised her even more was how she could have sensed this beforehand. She thought carefully but couldn’t explain this scientifically unfounded phenomenon. In the end, she could only comfort herself that perhaps it had happened in her past life, but she had been truly unconscious then, so she hadn’t been aware.
Now that she was awake, no matter how she pretended, it would be difficult to remain flawless. Doctors and nurses came every day, and sooner or later they would discover her true condition. Anxious, Shen Yiqiu couldn’t sleep all night.
She spent the entire night carefully reviewing the people she could trust, and the result left her disheartened. Staring blankly at the ceiling, Shen Yiqiu sighed, “Mom and Dad always said I should focus on my studies and not waste time on irrelevant things. It’s a pity that now, it’s precisely these ‘irrelevant things’ that could help me.”
If you don’t usually connect with or visit people, who would be willing to take on trouble for you when something happens? Besides, having been so tragically deceived in her past life, even if a stranger offered help, she might not dare to accept it.
After racking her brains all night, she finally fell asleep after dawn, saving herself from having to pretend. However, sleeping and being in a coma were different. She might fool the careless young nurses, but she couldn’t escape the professional eye of the attending physician.
“Xiao Qiu’s complexion looks good today, and all her indicators are stable. She should wake up in the next couple of days. Please pay close attention and observe her.” After completing his routine check, the doctor specifically instructed the nurses before leaving.
Shen Yiqiu frowned. It seemed she could only delay it until tomorrow at the latest.
Another night of usual quiet descended. Shen Yiqiu’s body didn’t experience any discomfort, and no one came to disturb her. She had slept too much during the day and wasn’t sleepy at all at night, so she just lay there in a daze.
Over the past few days, she had recalled everyone she knew, even struggling to remember the name of her elementary school deskmate, but to no avail. Perhaps because she had died once, Shen Yiqiu’s mentality was not as fragile and insecure as it had been at eighteen.
After a day and night of analysis and self-consolation, she had calmed down from her initial anxiety. But there was no way she would resign herself to her fate and relive the crappy and suffocating life of her past life.
Staring at the ceiling, trying to find a focal point, Shen Yiqiu gathered all her strength to encourage herself. She had to live a different life!
If the old path was blocked, she would find a new one. If there was no one suitable among her acquaintances, she would expand her search. Even a stranger would do, as long as they could help uphold justice.
Shen Yiqiu was grateful that she would be turning eighteen next month, which meant she could be free from the constraints of guardianship and live as a completely independent adult. But then she remembered that this family trip was also an early celebration of her birthday. It was a pity her parents didn’t live to see her become an adult. Another pang of heartache hit her.
The sky outside gradually brightened. As sleepiness and drowsiness washed over her, a name suddenly popped into her mind: Qin Qianrou.
Qin Qianrou… Shen Yiqiu fought off sleepiness, searching her memory bank for information about this name.
“Who is she? The name sounds familiar, but I don’t seem to know her,” she muttered to herself, feeling increasingly unfamiliar with herself after her rebirth.
Drowsiness overwhelmed her. Before falling into a deep sleep, a scene from two years ago under her maternal uncle’s apartment building suddenly reappeared: a tall, young woman stood facing her uncle, talking non-stop. Shen Yiqiu hid by the stairwell, not daring to approach, for fear of interrupting their date.
Shen Yiqiu waited for a while but they didn’t stop talking, leaving her unsure whether to leave or stay. She had planned to have dinner at her uncle’s place tonight, but it seemed that wasn’t going to happen. Suddenly, she heard a shout followed by a loud slap.
Shen Yiqiu’s eyes widened, confirming that her maternal uncle had indeed been slapped. What was even more surprising was that he wasn’t angry at all, but instead called out to the departing woman several times: “Qianrou, Qianrou, listen to me…”
After slapping her uncle, the woman turned and left without hesitation, not giving him a chance to stop her. Now, Shen Yiqiu dared not go out, and besides, she didn’t know how to comfort people.
To avoid embarrassing her uncle, Shen Yiqiu quietly slipped away. An hour later, when she received a call from her uncle, she pretended to be completely unaware, “Oh, I’m so sorry, Uncle. My classmate insisted on taking me to KFC. I won’t be coming over tonight.”
Her uncle’s voice was low and listless. He didn’t sound particularly happy or relieved when she said she wasn’t coming. He hung up after a few brief words.
Sitting alone in KFC, eating her burger and chicken wings, Shen Yiqiu thought about her uncle’s lifeless tone and couldn’t help but think of the woman named Qianrou again.
Named Qianrou, gentle and soft, but she wasn’t gentle at all.
Shen Yiqiu heard the name again after her maternal uncle returned from another failed blind date. He was distraught for some reason and drank a lot of alcohol by himself. Seeing his distress, Shen Yiqiu handed him a wet towel, awkwardly trying to think of something comforting to say.
As she was still formulating her words, her uncle, leaning against the sofa, suddenly collapsed onto the carpet, hugging an empty bottle and calling out repeatedly, “Qianrou… Qianrou… Qin Qianrou…”
Shen Yiqiu leaned closer to finally hear the woman’s full name. So her name was Qin Qianrou.
However, after that drunken incident, her maternal uncle started traveling extensively, and Shen Yiqiu never heard him mention the name again.
Later, Shen Yiqiu seemed to have heard the name Qin Qianrou a few times. A few classmates who followed current events seemed to particularly admire her, mentioning her frequently. They would say things like, “Did you know? This news was uncovered by Goddess Qianrou. I watched the special report yesterday; she was on the front lines for the entire interview!”
Shen Yiqiu wasn’t one to join in the excitement, but she had a gentle personality and a mild temper. Since her classmates were enthusiastic, she didn’t want to spoil their fun, so she listened quietly, being a dutiful audience.
After hearing it so often, she occasionally watched Qin Qianrou’s programs on the news channel, but most of the time she preferred reading and doing exercises. Qin Qianrou on screen had an outstanding temperament, a typical professional woman. She spoke concisely and wasn’t overly tactful in her interviews, sometimes even questioning interviewees into silence.
Perhaps because she had witnessed Qin Qianrou slapping someone, the seemingly aloof woman on the screen appeared a bit softer to Shen Yiqiu.
However, Shen Yiqiu couldn’t help but wonder, how could such a beautiful woman be so fierce?
The memories of Qin Qianrou mingled with her dreams, and the answer she had been pondering for days finally surfaced. Perhaps because she now had a solution, Shen Yiqiu slept soundly.
She was woken in the morning by voices around her. Having already made up her mind, she decided to stop feigning a coma, so she opened her eyes amidst the noise.
“Hey? Look, is she awake?” A middle-aged man’s voice rang out, and Shen Yiqiu’s hand, hidden under the blanket, suddenly clenched.
She would never forget this voice. The first voice she heard after waking up in her past life was this one. And the owner of this voice was none other than Shao Qidong, the creditor who had driven her almost insane!
Shen Yiqiu turned her head, instinctively wanting to avoid the eyes that were scrutinizing her. This debt couldn’t be left unsettled! Resentment boiled within her, but she couldn’t show it.
Now, she had to pretend she didn’t know Shao Qidong. Today was their first meeting. Before this, Shen Yiqiu had never seen this person nor heard her parents mention his name.
“Excuse me, I need to do a detailed examination on the patient.” The attending physician was also a middle-aged man, but Shen Yiqiu found him much more approachable than Shao Qidong.
Besides Shao Qidong, there were two other people standing in the ward. Through the gaps between the busy physician’s movements, Shen Yiqiu saw them.
Frowning, she stared at them for a while. Faced with strangers, she could only respond with silence.
As if sensing her confusion, the younger of the two took the initiative to introduce himself, “My name is Chen Kang, from the Traffic Police Brigade. We were the ones who brought you to the hospital last week.”
He then pointed to the person beside him and continued, “This is our Deputy Captain Liu.”
Upon hearing “Traffic Police Brigade,” Shen Yiqiu recalled the car accident a week ago, although to her, it had already been several years. But thinking about the scene of her loved ones’ deaths, no one could remain indifferent.
Shen Yiqiu moved her lips. Before she could speak, tears started flowing.
Faced with enemies and bad people, she couldn’t cry, and she wouldn’t cry.
But faced with those who had helped and saved her, the kindness in her heart prevented her from remaining indifferent.
Chen Kang had been worried about this poor girl. Taking advantage of his day off, he decided to visit her at the hospital. Unexpectedly, he ran into Captain Liu at the hospital entrance and learned that he wasn’t the only one concerned about Shen Yiqiu.
To their surprise, Shen Yiqiu woke up shortly after they arrived at the ward. Before Chen Kang and Officer Liu could rejoice, they were startled by her tearful face.
“Hey, hey, hey, waking up is a good thing! Why are you crying?” Chen Kang tried to comfort Shen Yiqiu awkwardly, but found himself at a loss for words.
Captain Liu, having seen such scenes more often, patted Chen Kang’s shoulder and took over, “Xiao Qiu, the most important thing for you now is to recuperate and strive for a speedy recovery and discharge. There’s still a long road ahead, and your family wants you to be well.”
Although his words were more impactful than Chen Kang’s, they still touched a sore spot, making her feel even more heartbroken. The attending physician couldn’t bear it and interrupted in a low voice, “The patient has just woken up and isn’t suitable for too many visitors. You shouldn’t say too many comforting words for now, so as not to affect Xiao Qiu’s emotions.”
From the moment the accident happened until now, Shen Yiqiu’s tragic experience and lucky escape had touched many people’s hearts. Perhaps out of pity and compassion for this child, they unconsciously treated her as their own.
“Doctor, when can she be discharged?” Shao Qidong, who had been silent, suddenly spoke. Shen Yiqiu shuddered, even her tears momentarily stopping.
“We’ll have to wait for the results of today’s examination. If there are no major issues, she’ll need to stay for another week of observation.”
“A week?”
“A week!”
Chen Kang felt that a week was too short for someone who survived such a horrific accident, while Shao Qidong felt that seven days was too long.
The attending physician ignored their reactions. In his eyes, the patient’s condition was the only thing that mattered.
“Although Xiao Qiu’s injuries aren’t serious, she isn’t suitable for visitors at the moment. She needs more rest.”
The implication was clear: he wanted them to leave.
Chen Kang and Officer Liu had just come for a quick visit. They had been busy handling the accident and finally had a break, so they wanted to check on Shen Yiqiu. Seeing her awake, they were relieved. With the doctor’s words, they naturally wouldn’t stay and disturb her.
Shao Qidong’s face darkened. Even after Chen Kang and Officer Liu had left, he remained rooted to the spot, not moving an inch.
The doctor directed the nurses to turn Shen Yiqiu over and over for their examinations. Noticing that there was still someone standing in the ward, even the most good-natured person would be displeased.
Doctors disliked disobedient patients the most, as well as those who disturbed patients, the latter often being more annoying.
“Sir, is there anything else?”
Shao Qidong stared at the doctor’s back for a moment, then met his gaze. “I’ll stay and accompany her. She has no relatives to care for her now.”
Everyone present knew Shen Yiqiu’s current situation. A week after she was admitted, someone from the Traffic Police had come and explained: her parents were deceased, and they couldn’t contact any other relatives. The only person they could contact was a close friend of her parents, but it would take time for them to arrive.
While she was in a coma, there was nothing much to do; just lie there. Now that she was awake, being alone in the hospital wasn’t pleasant. Shao Qidong had been waiting outside her ward for days, claiming to be Shen’s father’s business partner, so he could be considered to have some connection with the family.
A young nurse suddenly spoke, “I’m afraid that’s not appropriate.”
Shao Qidong glared at her, causing the nurse to shrink back.
The nurse hesitated for a moment, then mustered the courage to continue, “She’s a young lady, and you’re not related by blood. It’s inconvenient for you to stay overnight. Besides, if she needs to use the restroom or wash up, it would be awkward with you here. You’d be more of a hindrance than a help.”
These were honest words and also a matter the hospital had to consider.
Shao Qidong’s face darkened. After a moment, he slowly shifted his feet. “I’ll find a woman to come.”
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